


Safe Heaven

by Better_Than_Chocolate



Category: Shadowhunters (TV)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Human, M/M
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-05-18
Updated: 2020-05-17
Packaged: 2021-03-02 20:49:06
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,516
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24243088
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Better_Than_Chocolate/pseuds/Better_Than_Chocolate
Summary: “You might want to stop.” The man said, almost like an idea, threw at him carelessly. It’s an option after all.“Or, we can call someone.” He said this time, hand gesticulating almost as if he was hoping he would. That he would use his last lifeline to call a friend. To ask for help to a question he does not know the answer to.“Do you want to stop?” The man asked once again, a smile playing on his lips that might not be visible to the camera and definitely not visible to the audience.. but to him. It is crystal clear.He saw it many, many times before. It’s only a twitch of lips. A barely there, shadow of a smile.But it tells so much.It’s smug, it’s cocky. It is drawn with prejudice, bigoted ideas, a hint of superiority, only seen on the face of rich, white men.Those who think, they are better by birth right."You might be just right. I shall use my last lifeline.” Magnus said as he leaned back comfortably, smiling as he looked into the other’s eyes.“Very well – the man leaned forward with a clasp of his hand and a grin – who shall we call?”ORTheWho wants to be a millionaireAU no one asked for
Relationships: Magnus Bane/Alec Lightwood
Comments: 11
Kudos: 24





	Safe Heaven

**Author's Note:**

> Hello ducklings!  
> With Revolution coming to an end I can finally focus on my next multi-chapter story.  
> I've been sitting on this since Christmas and now I can finally focus on this.  
> The story has 15 chapters all together.  
> I'm not gonna lie.. I absolutely love this.  
> I can only hope you guys will like it too.  
> Kudos and comments are very much appreciated.  
> Until next time x

“It is a hard question. You should really think it through. The stake is huge.” The man said, eyes not leaving his face.  
He was like a hawk. Waiting for something, the tiniest sign of weakness to launch onto. To attack it with claws, sharp and deadly.. to rip it to shreds.

“You might want to stop.” The man spoke again, almost like an idea, threw at him carelessly. It’s an option after all. 

“Or, we can call someone.” He said this time, hand gesticulating almost as if he was hoping he would. That he would use his last lifeline to call a friend. To ask for help to a question he does not know the answer to. 

“Do you want to stop?” The man asked once again, a smile playing on his lips that might not be visible to the camera and definitely not visible to the audience.. but to him. It is crystal clear. 

He saw it many, many times before. It’s only a twitch of lips. A barely there, shadow of a smile.  
But it tells so much.  
It’s smug, it’s cocky. It is drawn with prejudice, bigoted ideas, a hint of superiority, only seen on the face of rich, white men.  
Those who think, they are better by birth right.  


The urge to laugh into his face is strong. Almost too strong.  
He has seen it all before. He wants to tell the man that he isn’t fazed.  
That his efforts to intimidate him are lost on him.  
That his degrading tone doesn’t make him feel small and insignificant.  
That his unwanted, yet pressing advise for him to back off, to give up, only wants him to keep going, to fight. 

“You might be just right. I shall use my last lifeline.” Magnus said as he leaned back comfortably, smiling as he looked into the other’s eyes. 

“Very well – the man leaned forward with a clasp of his hand and a grin – who shall we call?” 

***

“Good evening ladies and gentlemen, I’m Valentine Morgenstern and this is the WHO WANTS TO BE A MILLIONAIRE.” The man spoke, voice raised as he turned around with a beaming smile, hands spread wide as he took in the roar and applaud of the audience around himself. 

“Just in a couple of minutes, we will welcome our newest contestant on the show, but before we do so, let me go through the rules really quick.  
As most of you know, there are fifteen questions, starting off at $100, going up all the way to 1 million dollars.” He said with a smile, waiting patiently for the general cheering to subdue. 

“There are three lifelines available to our contestant to use in case they need additional help with a question. These are the followings – he said as he turned towards the board behind himself – 50:50, taking two wrong answers away, leaving behind two more, one of which is the correct answer. 

We also have the help of the audience and the help of friend who can be phoned if the contestant decides so. 

There are also three safe heavens, which are at question five, ten and fifteen. Once the player correctly answers to a safe heaven question the money on that level becomes a guaranteed win. If the contestant fails to give the right answer to a question before the first safe heaven, they are leaving with no money.” 

The audience gave a general round of applause and the man waited patiently for the voice in his ear informing him that the man is ready to be called onto the show. 

“Ladies and gentlemen, welcome our next contestant, the thirty-two years old Magnus Bane from New York City.” He bellowed as his hand gestured towards the entrance, from where a man emerged in the rapid movements of red and orange lights. 

***

Magnus felt his heart thumping in his ears, almost loudly enough to close out the buzz of the audience and the man in front of him. 

To say that he was nervous, was an understatement. When he applied to the show, it seemed like a generally good idea. A spur of a moment in his drunken state, but a solid plan regardless. 

Because he never thought that he would get a word back, let alone actually make it onto the show. 

Now, being there.. it was suddenly real. He felt the familiar music moving under his skin, the lights painting figures and shadows on his skin, casting him in blue and orange for a moment until they all settled, along with the level of noise. 

He walked up to the host; a confident smile plastered across his face like a skin-tight mask. 

“Hello.” Magnus said as he shook hand with the older man. His grasp was strong but brief before he pointed towards one of the bar stools on the left. 

“Welcome Magnus.” The man said once they both took their seats. 

It was a bit better, having an entire table between them. 

He watched the show plenty of times, it wasn’t like he never saw the other man before, but it was completely different from the comfort of his living room. 

The man was slightly sturdier than the image on the tv screen showed him. He was bald in his late forties. 

“How are you feeling?” The man asked with a smile as he looked at Magnus. 

“Nervous.” He answered honestly because anything else at this point would have been a lie just too big to sell. 

“Very well. Tell us about yourself a bit.” The man said with an amused chuckle and Magnus used that moment to clear his throat before answering. 

“I’m 32 years old and I’m a counsellor in Brooklyn.” He said and wondered if he should add something else, not sure if the bare minimum would be sufficient enough for an introduction. 

“What does that exactly involve? The job of a counsellor.” The man asked as he tilted his head to the side in curiosity. 

“Well, it’s a complex job. A bit of everything. I give guidance to people in different areas of life, helping them to either solve an issue or referring to them to the right people if the matter at hand requires a more in-depth help.” He said confidently. He never had problem with small talks, he was also charismatic enough to talk about anything and everything but talking about his job was always one of the easiest topics in a discussion. “Very well, Magnus. That hopefully means that you have a good general knowledge of wider subjects.” The man said with a slightly questioning tone. 

Magnus nodded, reassuringly. 

“Great. Let’s get to it then, shall we? As you know, there will be fifteen questions tonight, the first one starting at $100 and the last one for 1 million dollars. You’ll have three safe heavens, the correct answer giving you a guaranteed prize and also three lifelines if you need some help. Are you ready to become the next millionaire?” 

“I am indeed.” He smiled and listened to the applause coming from all around him. 

“The first question tonight for $100 is the following. – the man said as he looked down at his monitor and Magnus followed his example - What animal is featured in Eric Carle’s famous children’s book, The Very Hungry ___ ?  
A. Caterpillar  
B. Puppy  
C. Turtle  
D. Ladybug”  


Magnus blinked once, twice. His eyes ran across the words again, waiting for them to make some sort of sense. 

“So?” Valentine asked, ducking his head in an attempt to catch Magnus’ eyes. 

“I actually don’t know.” Magnus said smiling as he looked up to find a surprised expression on the other man’s face. 

“I’m sorry, come again?” He asked, leaning closer, a hand placed behind his ear as if he didn’t hear Magnus just fine for the first time. 

He cleared his throat as he repeated. 

“I don’t know.” 

“How is that possible my friend? Every kid knows the tale. Right?” He asked the audience with a laugh, who responded with laughs of their own. 

Magnus’ smile didn’t drop as he spoke. 

“They didn’t exactly bother with bedtime stories in foster care.” He said calmly as he kept his gaze on the man in front of him. 

“Oh, I’m sorry.” The man said with enough concern tainting his voice that if Magnus would have been a naïve man, he would truly believe the empty words. He wasn’t, however. 

He knew that the words came from the tv crew and not from the bottom of the man’s heart. 

“What happened?” The man asked and Magnus sighed. 

_“Mamaaaa”. Magnus screamed, loud and broken, voice cracking as his eyes landed on his mother, lying lifeless with eyes open, staring into space._

_He stayed by her for days. Talking to her. Asking, begging to wake up._

_Until people walked into his home, lifting him up as he screamed and kicked to be freed, but to no avail._

_The streets changed; the lights passed him in quick pace as the car drove along the endless road._

_He blinked up to the officers, all strangers as they ushered him into a small room with white walls and neon lights a couple of days later._

_A few minutes later a man walked in._

_A man Magnus have never seen before…but his eyes… his eyes were like his. The familiar hint of gold around his irises was the same Magnus saw in the mirror._

_“Sayang.” The man said with a smile. Dear. It meant. His mother used to call him that._

_Magnus ran to the man, hugging his waist with both hands hoping that just maybe.. he isn’t so alone in the world after all._

_His father was a strange man._

_He didn’t cook. Magnus missed the familiar scent of satay his mother used to cook every Sunday._

_He didn’t clean. He didn’t sing around the house like his mother did every time she moped the floor or watered the flowers._

_He didn’t talk much. He didn’t ask Magnus how his day was or if there was something he wanted to do._

_He didn’t laugh. His voice didn’t travel in the house to wrap around Magnus like the softest blanket on a cold winter night._

_He was nothing like his mother._

_He did things his mother has never done._

_He worked a lot behind closed doors._

_He ushered Magnus to the side when he was much of a burden to him._

_He snapped and ordered._

_Until Magnus decided, that although their eyes are matching.. they are two very different people. Too different._

***

_He tried to cower behind an officer as he was led into a house that smelled so different from his home. The walls were painted yellow, it was meant to radiate warmth but all he felt was the shiver running down his spine as the woman crunched down in front of him with a smile._

_He wanted his mother, more than ever._

_He watched the officer talking to the woman before nodding at Magnus and leaving him alone with the stranger._

_He cried that night._

_He cried until his tears were soaked up by the cover of his pillow. Until his throat hurt and nose got blocked._

_He cried until the sun came up._

_And then he cried a bit more._

_He was alone, so alone in the world that was different from his. It felt like his world turned upside down._

_But then he met him.  
_ _A boy. Younger than himself. Shorter too._  
_He was a bit like Magnus.  
_

_He didn’t speak. He didn’t smile. He just was. Just like him. The boy with the blank face._

_'Raphael', he said one day. For the first time, he realised the boy was no longer a stranger. No. He was his friend._

_And he remained his friend. Through the numerous foster homes, through the endless sea of rejections._

_He remained his friend through all of it and even after._

_They maybe never had a book to read as kids, they might never have someone who cared for them enough to read them a book._

_But they had each other and that worth more than any bedtime story could ever have._

“I was born in Indonesia. My mother died when I was only five. My father left before I was even born but it turned out he moved to the states and since he never officially gave up his parental rights, I was taken to Philly. I lived in foster homes until I turned 18.” Magnus said calmly. His past wasn’t bed on roses. But that’s what it is. His past. He learnt a long time ago not to live in the past. 

“I see. I’m sorry. It must have been hard.” The man said, covering his mouth. 

“Anyway. I don’t know the answer to the question.” Magnus said with a hum. He honestly had no idea. He never even heard of it and any of the four options seemed as good as the other. 

“The audience, however, seemed to be confident enough when the question came up, so I am more than happy to ask for their help.” He said, still smiling. 

“Are you sure?” The man asked as he leaned back, a hand under his chin. 

“I am. I would like to ask for the help of the audience.” Magnus said with a nod. 

“Very well then. Ladies and gentlemen, I know you didn’t expect to be needed this soon – he said just with a tad bit of sarcasm, that could have pass as humour, in his voice that was met with a chorus of laughs in the audience – but please take your keypads out and enter the correct answer.” 

There was the well-known music playing in the background to exaggerate the tenseness of this moment. 

Magnus looked at the large screen without a word as he waited for the audience to send through their votes. 

“Let’s see the results.” The man said clasping his hand before bursting into a laugh. 

“Would you look at that. 100% of people went with A. Caterpillar.” The man said almost as if he tried to show Magnus just how wrong it was that he didn’t know the answer to such an obvious question. 

“Perfect. I guess I have my answer then. I would like to go ahead with A. Caterpillar.” 

“Are you sure? Don’t want to phone a friend just to be on the safe side of things?” He asked with a laugh. 

“I’m positive. It’s my final answer.” Magnus answered with a smile of his, ignoring how the man was clearly laughing at him and not along with him. 

“And the answer is….correct.” The man said and his declaration was followed by cheering from all around the room. 

Magnus however, only heard it distantly.. the only thought in his mind was that he will do everything in his power to make sure that if it ever comes to that… his children will know everything about The Very Hungry Caterpillar and all the other books that is there to know for kids.


End file.
